Cavity walls of a masonry veneer tied to a backup wall are commonly utilized in construction to provide for an aesthetically pleasing appearance while being less expensive than solid masonry walls. One common type of cavity wall used in both residential and commercial buildings is a brick veneer tied to a stud back-up wall.
The brick veneer is tied to the stud back-up wall by use of masonry or brick veneer anchors. Such anchors are generally a planar anchor plate which is attached to the stud of the stud back-up wall. The anchor plate at the exposed end is provided with a slot through which a brick tie wire is inserted, the brick tie wire being mortared between two rows of bricks to provide a secure connection between the brick veneer and back-up wall. As there are a large quanitty of connectors required to secure the brick veneer their cost becomes a very critical factor. In the past, these connectors have been made of a galvanized carbon steel which is a material similar to that which is used in the construction of the metal studs for the stud back-up walls.
While it is highly desirable to provide for the proper location of the anchor plates so that the slotted exposed ends stand at the correct distance proud of the back-up wall, the commonly utilized means for effecting such location has necessitated added plate material increasing costs. As a result some anchor plates have eliminated any locating means and have to be set in position simply by sight giving rise to inaccurate tie wire embeddments. In addition, there has recently been serious concern expressed by a number of agencies regarding the potential for corrosion and failure of the masonry anchors due to the exposure of the anchors to moisture which is present in the cavity between the stud back-up wall and the masonry veneer.
One widely used example of a connector which provides for accurate presentation of the slotted exposed end of the anchor plate is an L-shaped connector plate with the base of the "L" fitting over the face edge of the stud and the leg of the "L" being connected to the main part of the stud and having a slot for a brick tie wire in a nose portion of the plate extending beyond the front edge of the stud. By constructing the anchor in such a shape, various sizes of anchors for various sizes of studs, such as "4", "6" and "8" inch studs, may be constructed. While such an anchor plate is hugely successful, it requires a significant quantity of material which increases with stud size giving rise to increasing costs.